Kurt "Nightcrawler" Wagner
Kurt is a blue teleporting mutant kid with an image inducer to make him look like a normal human. age: 15 origins: X-Men: Evolution, canon app link: '''here '''hmd: here played by Anarin Setting Mutants have been a part of the human race since the ancient times. Sometimes accepted as heroes and sometimes reviled as demons, for the most part they've been on the background, never discussed by history, never allowed to exist officially. For unknown reasons, though, the number of mutants has grown dramatically in the past few decades - and, more importantly, they're beginning to find each other and learn none of them is alone. Of course, mutations have always existed in humans and other species - heterochromia, polydactyly, albinism - but these are a bit more extreme. Ranging the gamut from physical mutations such as size, strength, speed, and appearance to manipulation of the laws of nature itself, whether through control of fire, ice and wind or the ability to alter the perceptions of others, read their minds, and use strictly mental effort to move objects, mutant powers were quickly classified as dangerous by those without them. Taking place at the beginning of the twenty-first century, there is an interesting mix of modern and post-modern technology. Cell phones and laptops are in fairly constant use, but once we step away from normal society it's clear that mutants like Forge use their powers to create far more advanced technology. From supercomputers like Cerebro and the Danger Room to the laser turrets that defend the Institute's grounds, it's clear there's a bastion of technology hidden from the view of the public (much like mutants themselves). Other than that, though, Bayville, NY, is a fairly normal town. It's not far from New York City, but small enough to only have a single high school. One of the town's most influential citizens is the bald, wheelchair-bound man with the mansion outside of city limits: Professor Charles Xavier. His School for the Gifted isn't a private education facility, as his students attend Bayville High, but rather explained as a boarding house for gifted youngsters who have extracurricular activities in common. Allowing the young mutants in his charge to attend a regular public school and be bound by its rules is an excellent way to keep them integrated into society, as Xavier believes is the best course for the future of mutant-kind. Naturally, there are other points of view as well. Namely, some mutants feel that they are not accepted into society, be it for their powers, appearance, or even socioeconomic background. These "outsiders" feel that all they have is each other, and they are also brought to the same town. Under Mystique's, and later Magneto's, guidance, this Brotherhood of Mutants is often shown in direct opposition to the X-Men. Rather than hiding themselves and working to help people, the Brotherhood focuses on personal gain and the advancement of mutants as a force of their own. Personality Kurt is essentially a good person. Despite nearly everything in life going against him - being abandoned by his birth parents, growing up looking like a demon, never fitting in - he was raised by two loving adoptive parents and takes their optimistic view on life. He has generally high expectations of other people, despite knowing they'll almost all be repulsed by his appearance. When he finds those who accept him for who he is, Kurt is a dedicated and determined friend for life. Kurt is also fairly irresponsible. He's young and faced with a freedom he's never had before - anonymity in the form of his holographic image inducer. Being able to blend in at a normal high school is, as he describes it, one of the best things that has ever happened to him. However, he jeopardizes this freedom fairly often by allowing his image inducer to become damaged, letting his tail slip out, bumping into people so they feel his two furry fingers, etc. He's a bit of an attention-seeker because, for the first time in his life, he can get positive attention from strangers. Still, when the going gets rough, Kurt is absolutely reliable in battle. He always uses his powers in inventive ways to keep his friends out of danger and rarely takes an offensive role. Xavier's training is focused on teaching the X-Men to help people; while Kurt certainly has a potentially unlimited deadly capability for sneak attacks and height drops, he almost never uses this kind of attack in the show. The exceptions are against very powerful enemies, such as Juggernaut, where his teleportation is essential to undoing Juggernaut's helmet and allowing him to become vulnerable. He's also fairly intelligent. Although his grades in school are never discussed, he has an instinctive understanding of physics (possible due in part to his mutation) that allows him to be so effective in battle and is fluent in both German and English. Nightcrawler is an excellent team player. He never takes an official leadership position, preferring to support Scott or the others, but when left with one of the younger or less experienced members he easily falls into the "big brother" category (which he enjoys immensely, often being treated as a little brother by the others such as Rogue). Nightcrawler has recently learned that Mystique, the enemy who also happens to be his high school principal, is his birth mother. He's always known he was adopted, but not that he was experimented on, stolen, and dropped into a river by his mother. He has conflicted feelings about this at the moment, though he eventually later comes to care for her (showing his optimism about people once again). He's found an excellent substitute family in the X-Men, however. Abilities & Weaknesses Nightcrawler is a teleporter. He slides through another dimension quickly, allowing him to hop locally to other places in our own. However, this is very distance-limited: Nightcrawler cannot go more then two miles, and anything over about a mile is tiring for him. He only gets very brief flashes of this dimension, and he doesn't like it at all - his entry and exit are characterized by a "bamf" sound and a wisp of brimstone smoke. It's later revealed that this dimension is full of poisonous gases, lakes of fire, and inhabited by predatory, dinosaur-like creatures that can follow him through if his mini-rifts are destabilized. He can take objects and others with him on his teleports, though he is never shown to take more than two others at a time. He does so by simply touching the other person and then teleporting. Aside from distance, his teleportation is also limited by perception: as he fears teleporting into the middle of a solid object, Nightcrawler will refuse to teleport to a place he cannot see or is not very familiar with (as he has several times teleported out of his own line of sight back to the Institute from school). This would also extend to teleporting into space without proper equipment. As part of his mutation, his teleportation does not conserve vertical momentum - many times, he falls from a great height, teleports a few feet over, and lands softly on the ground. However, horizontal momentum is not compensated for in the same way. He is often shows being pushed, teleporting, and then falling down from the push when he reappears. His powers are also affected by his physical state. If he's too tired, he cannot teleport at all, and when he's sick he can lose control. A sneeze may send him somewhere, though even when he does so asleep it seems to send him to familiar places. It's likely the rift and local teleportation network will also interfere with his powers from time to time. Mun permission will be asked for before teleporting another character, offensively or otherwise. Nightcrawler is also very agile. He's often shown jumping ten or more feet, clinging to walls, using his prehensile tail to hang from objects like a monkey, and performing acrobatics in combat. Work Credits None, yet Character Relationships *Logan "Wolverine" is from a slightly different universe, but Kurt doesn't quite realize that yet. He finds teasing the grumpy old man quite rewarding - even if it does land him with extra early-morning training sessions. Logan calls him "fuzzy blue elf" or just "elf" rather than his name, though Nightcrawler chooses to interpret this as a fond nickname. *Charles Xavier is his Professor, but Kurt is a little thrown off by the man's youth, hair, and ability to walk. Etc. Free Space brb